Dodgers Blue Heaven: Blog Kiosk: 4/25/2019 - Dodgers Links

Thursday, April 25, 2019

Blog Kiosk: 4/25/2019 - Dodgers Links - Some Odds and Ends

All it takes is one inning to ruin a good outing.

For five innings Walker Buehler was rolling along just fine. He had allowed only a single and a walk in what looked like a certain win for the Blue Crew. Then the sixth came around and everything just fell apart. He would go on to yield three runs before being replaced by Scott Alexander -- who fared no better. By the time the dust settled, the Dodgers had lost their lead and was now facing a three-run deficit. Per Rowan Kavner at Dodger Insider:

“When you can’t put guys away or you give them free passes or you make a mistake in the hitting zone, those guys are going to take advantage,” Roberts said. “Just like our guys.”

The Dodgers did mount a comeback, but it fell one-run short. They would lose 7-6. Photo above via Jon SooHoo/LA Dodgers 2019. Go here to check out more pics from yesterdays game. Below are more links to check out:

This Day in Dodgers History: In 1976 Cubs outfielder Rick Monday, in an act that will be remembered and celebrated throughout the country, snatched and rescued an American flag from two protesters who were in the midst of setting it on fire. You can watch it here.

"He got down on his knees and I could tell he wasn't throwing holy water on it," Monday said of one of the perpetrators. "If he's going to burn a flag, he better do it in front of somebody who doesn't appreciate it. I've visited enough veterans' hospitals and seen enough with their legs blown off defending that flag."

Happy Birthday, Darren Holmes, Brad Clontz & JP Howell!
Jon Weisman on twitter provides some more background regarding the flag incident indicated above -- from an excerpt from his book:

Here's my chapter in 100 Things Dodgers on the Rick Monday flag rescue, which took place 43 years ago today and is more poignant and sad than people usually remember. https://t.co/YebF9roOXG pic.twitter.com/dxY5u6aHq6
— Jon Weisman (@jonweisman) April 25, 2019

Via Bill Plunkett at the Daily Bulletin -- "Struggling? ‘No, I’m not,’ Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen says."

“It’s early, I only have 11 innings,” he said. “As a reliever, you’re going to see the ERA at 3.00 or whatever. It’s easy for people to say he’s struggling. No, I’m not. My batting average (against) is below .200. My WHIP is below 1.00. Slugging is below .300.”

Jansen is right on nearly every count. His ERA might be 3.09 (in 11-2/3 innings before Tuesday) but his strikeout rate is 12.3 – a significant jump from last year when he really did struggle and more in line with his career rate (13.5). Opposing hitters are batting .190 against him and his WHIP is indeed 0.86.

Via Daniel R. Epstein at Beyond the Boxscore -- "Cody Bellinger is better than Christian Yelich (and everybody else)."
Via Tim Rogers at Dodgers Nation -- "From Germany to the Dodgers-Baseball Journey of Sven Schueller."
Via Jeff Snider at Baseball Essential -- "“God’s Musician”: Keith Williams Jr. is a Dodger Stadium Must-Hear"

“I’m always nervous, man. Even at church, I’m nervous. You want to do your best at all times. But it’s an honor. I take it as an honor when I see people of all races coming together for the national anthem.”

Williams puts a unique spin on “The Star-Spangled Banner.” For the first half of the song, it is basically a traditional rendition done in gospel style, with passionate punctuations at the end of several lines. As the rockets start glaring, Williams’ passion ramps up. When our flag is still there, he makes his first change to the tune to shout it to the world. From that point on, the song is his own, culminating in a mid-word falsetto on “free” that steps up twice during “and the home of the” before dropping back to his natural register for “brave.”

I'm a little bit envious of Cubs fans, but only because of a game giveaway handed out at yesterdays game. Apparently, it was a special ticket promotion night featuring the Grateful Dead and those who ordered the ticket package received a Grateful Dead single. (Hat Tip: Reddit user u/Yasiel Puig) Check it out below.